Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1887-04-01

en- see That Jist Hoped right down
an waited fer the earthquakes an Gab'reI
to come fOllowin' along, acrackin' an
atootin'. laid thar awhile. but they
didn't neither on 'em come, an the creek
KEEP aclimbin' up to'ards its headwaters,
eff it'd ben sent fer to come back hum
an hadn't no time to spare gittin' thar.
1t were movin' back ards in a flood more'n
thirty foot high, ez nigh ez l could jedge
from seein' the gable end of it, and pooty
soon l noticed that tn were a heap o
| commotiOn on the edge of it.
"'Wall, says / to myself. Vittin' VI
onter my feet, TIL can't be nothin' to
hurt Teller in a flood th'ts dom its
best to run away from him like
that, says /, AN so | guess III
quit waitin' fer Gabriel an the arth.
quakes, says l, AN III jist start arter that
creek an see watts a ailin' on it to
make it go an cut up that way, says l.
80 away dug ez tight ex my legs'd
carry me, but the creek had got such q
start o. me that it tuck me a good halt
hour fore l ketched up with it. An ez
soon ez | did ketch up with it, my son, |
see to wunst wat were ailin' on it. Ye
must know, to git the hang o. this Peleg,
th't suckers starts fer the creeks on the
fust high water th't comes in the spring,
an th't they gether together by the boat
load at the mouths of creeks waitin' fer
the flood th't tells 'em things is ready fer
EN- up the creek, an then up they go.
That had been an onusu' good season for
suckers to winter over in, an they had
waxed an crowd fat, an gethered in
such uncommon big crowds, th't wen
they started in at the mouth o. Slopliclx
Creek that ninth day O. April, they Jest
damned the hull course o. the stream, an
fer time it had been nip an tuck ez to
witch ID hef to stop, the creek or the
suckers. But in them days suckers had
vim an push in 'em, These fellers at the
mouth o. Sloplick had started to git up
that creek, an 'twa'n't their fault, b'gosh,
II it couldn't furnish water enough, with
all the rain it d had fer week past fer
'em to wiggle up on; so they jist put their
shoulders to the wheel, an at it they
went, an showed the rushin' flood of OIL
Slopliek right back with 'em, pilin' it up
in wall thirty foot high, an keepin' her
a movin back so fast, steep ez the grade
were, th't she couldn't git no footholt,
an had to go. SO, of course, ev'rything
were left high an dry ahind that pushin'
army o. suckers, an natur' in them parts
were lookin' queer.
"Peleg, when l ketched up to that re-
treatin' creek, nothin' could be seen on
face O. that high wall but shouts, an
tails, an fins, an backs, an bellies o.
suckers. They was piled on one another
from the bed O. the creek to the top o.
the flood, pushin' an shown and crowd
in to keep the ball rollin'. l see wat
the hull business meant to wunst, an l
pitched right in to do some O. the tallest
sucker fishin' th't were ever heered on
along Sloplick Creek. chucked away
my pole and duv inter that bank o.
suckers an jist went to mimi fish by the
ton. They KEEP me on dead run to keep
up with 'em, they was h'istin' that stream
up hill so fast, but l grabbed an clawed
right an left, an throw'd suckers out on
the bank by the wagon load. / strung
suckers along the banks fer miled, an
still the flood went rollin' up hill ez easy
ez pickin' up sticks. The headwaters o.
Sloplick Creek was in swamp almost on
the top o. BOBBY Ridge. Ez were run
MIN long ahind that sucker bank all of a
student it struck me that if nothin' hap
pened to stop 'em, them suckers'd shove
the creek clean through the swamp, the
way they was goin', and push her on over
the ridge, and then she'd go tehoot down
t'other side, and an wipe Slayerop's
clearing often the face O. creation quick
erin lightnin' could melt tub of butter.
were bound to see the fun, an if suck
ers WANT the timidest an skeeriest crit
tiers th't swims, that fun d come to
pass.
ut had happened, sonny. th't only
the other day afore this high OF sucker
fishin' o mine, had considered it lee
tie piece O. duty | owed to the commu-
nifty to pitch inter Shadrack Jamberry,
OF Poke Jambeuys boy, an lam him
the properest kind Consistently he had
a grudge agin me. He lived close to the
creek, nearly two miled above our place,
at the Fiddler's Elbow Bend. This bend
was so sharp th't ez me an the suckers an
the creek were comm to'ards the bend
see Shadrack standin' on the bank, an
he see me. Tn want nuthin' selfish
about me, so hollered to Shadrack, to
show him th't | din't hev no hard feel
ms, to come back an foller the circus,
an lay in a stock O. suckers agin coon
famine. But Shadrack want of meek
an forgiyin's natur like me, an so, in
std O. takin' the olive branch l offered,
he grabs up a couple o. big stuns an
chucks 'em in the water ahead O. me an
the suckers. That skeert the timid fish
th't was in the lead, an they got de-
mor'lizcd an turned tail. The panic
spread to the hull caboodle O. suckers,
an the fust thing know'd were histed
up in the air zif I'd ben blowed up in a
blast, an wh-o-o-o! away / were goin'
back down stream like haiIstorm in a
hurrycahe O. wind Thar were. Peleg,
ridin' high an dry on big raft o. suck
ers, an gGin' sumpin' like miled o
minute boun' fer somewhat, but whar
didn't know. Ye orter be very thankful,
sonny, th't yer Twin now, an not in
them days wen us pioneers was a suffer-
in an runnin' risks like that, list to
plant civilization an git it in shape fer
folks that's livin' now.
II were boosted way up so high by that
raft O. demorlized suckers tht cz we tore
along towards our folks's clearin' could
look right down over the raise twixt it
an the creek, an ez we come higher |
could see my hard-workin' pap settin' in
the cabin door smokin' his corn cob pipe,
and my easy-goin nanny chopin
wood to git supper with Thinks / to
myself, | wonder if they'd ever find me
when this runaway food O. b'ilin' waters
an panic-struck suckers comes to head
some'rs! An jist then we struck the bend
IL, tba ,.raalz 4I,n al M, L.. 4